Pence plans sit-down with Trudeau in Providence

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WPRI) — Besides delivering a keynote speech, Vice President Mike Pence will take the opportunity to hold talks with the political leader of our neighbors to the north during the National Governors Association summer meeting, being hosted at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence.

The vice president’s press secretary, Marc Lotter, said Thursday that President Donald Trump had asked Pence to go to the meeting to send the message to the country’s governors that the Trump Administration plans to partner with the states, “in terms of education, health care, infrastructure. Those are things that the vice president knows very well from his time as a governor.

“This will be his opportunity to talk about how this president and this administration wants to be a partner with the states, [and] return power to the states to make decisions at the local level, and be the laboratories of innovation,” said Lotter.

While in Providence, Vice President Pence will also meet with fellow conference speaker, Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada. He’ll also hold a bilateral meeting to talk about immigration, trade, NAFTA, “and ways that we can grow both of our countries’ economies,” Lotter added.